PSG rejoins MOBA scene through LGD Gaming partnership

Paris Saint-Germain’s esports division is making a comeback to the MOBA genre half a year since they released their League of Legends roster.

The Ligue 1 club has announced an official partnership with LGD Gaming at a press conference in Shanghai, with the Chinese team wearing official PSG jerseys at all LAN appearances from now on as well as playing under the name “PSG.LGD”.

This was the first occasion in which a major European football club has invested in a Dota 2 team of their own, and according to the official press release that accompanied the announcement, PSG Esports has been targeting Asia as a possible area of expansion and as a part of their development strategy.

“We are very happy to once again be a pioneer by being the first major European football club to invest in Dota 2,” said Fabien Allègre, director of merchandising and diversification at PSG. “With an average of over 500,000 players simultaneously connected, Dota 2 is one of the most popular esports games — especially in Asia, a strategic region for PSG.”

LGD has found success in recent events in the Dota 2 Pro Circuit, particularly at the Dota 2 Asia Championships — where they placed second after Southeast Asian powerhouse Mineski in the grand finals.

LGD is also amongst the teams to beat in China, and a serious threat to other squads around the world.

After the announcement of the partnership, they will play under the new PSG.LGD banner at Epicenter XL, the next Pro Circuit Major set to take place in Moscow on Friday, Apr. 27.

Epicenter XL will see a prize pool of $1 million, and a total of 1500 Pro Circuit points at stake.